After an abbreviated schedule Saturday, the full six-game schedule of Madden sims returns to the DraftKings Dream Stream for the first Sunday of May. The three-game featured classic slate kicks off at 6:00 p.m. ET when the San Francisco 49ers host the Houston Texans. At 8:00 p.m. ET, a pair of teams from the NFC South take center stage as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers welcome the Carolina Panthers, and the final game of the day will spotlight the Green Bay Packers visiting the New York Jets at 10:00 p.m. ET. Check out my favorite fantasy football plays from the three matchups listed below.
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Quarterback
Stud
Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans at San Francisco 49ers, $7,600 — Watson has been a great dual-threat producer in these sims, averaging 23.5 DKFP on 196.5 passing yards and 72.3 rushing yards per contest. He has over 90 yards rushing in three of his past four games with over 21 DKFP in each of those four contests. Earlier in the sims, he had a pair of big games against the 49ers, posting 25.7 and 17.22 DKFP. While the matchup isn’t ideal, his ceiling still makes him the top QB to pay up for on this slate.
Other Options — Aaron Rodgers ($7,100), Tom Brady ($6,700)
Value
Teddy Bridgewater, Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccanneers, $6,000 — Bridgewater comes in on a nice roll with multiple touchdowns in three straight sims resulting in 18.76, 19.48 and 34.72 DKFP. He has faced the Bucs eight times in these Madden sims, averaging 15.6 DKFP with some big games and some bust games. He has more upside than the other cheap QBs, though, and brings a little rushing potential as well.
Other Option — Sam Darnold ($5,600)
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Running Back
Stud
Raheem Mostert, San Francisco 49ers vs. Houston Texans, $7,800 — Mostert’s big-play ability and heavy workload have made him one of the top RBs in Madden 21, and he’s in a great spot against the Texans. Mostert had 15.4 and 32.5 DKFP in his two earlier meetings with Houston and comes into this rematch on a streak of nine-straight games with double-digit DKFP, highlighted by three straight games with over 42 DKFP. That recent run of success has boosted his average to 21.7 DKFP per contest and pushed his total to 71 touchdowns in his 70 sims.
Other Option — Aaron Jones ($7,300)
Value
LeSean McCoy, Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Carolina Panthers, $4,500 — McCoy’s role as the third-down RB has resulted in an average of 3.1 catches for 21.7 yards in addition to his 18.5 rushing yards per sim. He has over 15 DKFP in each of his three most recent meetings with Carolina and has always seemed to put up good numbers in this divisional clash.
Other Option — Duke Johnson ($4,400)
Wide Receiver
Stud
Davante Adams, Green Bay Packers at New York Jets, $6,900 — The Packers have the best passing offense on the slate and get a good matchup against the New York secondary, which is the weak point of their Madden 21 defense. Adams has been a little inconsistent since Aaron Rodgers ($7,100) spreads the ball around, but when Rodgers locks in on him, Adams has produced monster games. He just had 10 catches and 24.7 DKFP in his most recent sim and is averaging 16.2 DKFP on 4.9 catches for 71.2 yards per sim. He posted over 11 DKFP in nine of his past 11 contests.
Other Option — Mike Evans ($6,000)
Value
Jamison Crowder, New York Jets vs. Green Bay Packers, $5,500 — Crowder is the Jets’ WR1 and primary slot option in Madden 21, which usually results in good volume. He is averaging 3.9 catches per sim and has at least three catches in nine straight games. He is averaging 2.0 DKFP more at home than on the road and posted 11.7 DKFP in his first game against Green Bay.
Kendrick Bourne, San Francisco 49ers vs. Houston Texans, $4,000 — In each of his first two meetings with the Texans, Bourne outproduced WR1 Deebo Samuel ($5,400) since the Texans are vulnerable on the outside, where Bourne does most of his work. He’s a solid value play at just $4K, averaging 3.7 catches for 52.5 yards per sim.
Other Options — Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($4,800), Breshad Perriman ($4,200), Scotty Miller ($3,200)
Tight End
Stud
Chris Herndon, New York Jets vs. Green Bay Packers, $4,600 — Herndon has at least five catches in five straight sims, averaging 14.2 DKFP over that span. He had a big game with seven catches, 74 yards, a touchdown and 22.4 DKFP in his first matchup with the Packers, who have struggled against TEs throughout Madden 21.
Other Options — Rob Gronkowski ($4,300)
Value
Darren Fells, Houston Texans at San Francisco 49ers, $3,700 — Fells is averaging 4.2 catches per contest and typically gets plenty of targets. He only has 13 touchdowns in his 67 sims, but his PPR work makes him a relatively safe play under $4K. He produced five straight games with at least 9.8 DKFP before a pair of quieter performances to start Houston’s current virtual road trip.
Other Option — Ian Thomas ($4,100)
DST
Stud
49ers DST vs. Houston Texans, $2,800 — Watson has had some turnover issues despite his big fantasy numbers, so he’s a good matchup to pick against with your DST. The 49ers’ DST posted 9.0 and 7.0 DKFP in their two previous meetings with Houston and comes into the rematch on a run of five straight sims with multiple sacks. Overall, the 49ers have 156 sacks and 30 takeaways in their 70 sims.
Value
Panthers DST at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, $2,500 — The Panthers are in for a tough matchup against Tampa Bay, but their defense has posted double-digit DKFP against Brady twice in their past meetings and has reached at least 3.0 DKFP in seven of those eight sims.
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Z.Thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.